Rejected (Shadow Beast Shifters, #1)(14)

Sprinting as best I could, I welcomed the surge of adrenaline, knowing it might be all that got me through. Taking the stairs as fast as possible, I fought the nausea and head spins. There was no time to succumb to my injuries; I had to get to safety first.

From below, I heard the first sound of a howl. Glendra was calling the other wolves. Hopefully, I’d be faster than them…

When I reached the first-floor landing, I took the less-traveled path toward an exit I often used to slip away. It was off to the side of the smaller kitchen, and to my knowledge, very few knew about it.

The best part of this exit was its close proximity to the forest.

More howls joined Glendra’s, the sound and scent of wolves all around, but I tunneled my vision and didn’t look back. For some reason, I hadn’t died from Jaxson’s attack, and I was not wasting this second chance.

When I burst out of the unlocked back door, the last slivers of moonlight bathed across me, and my wolf howled in my chest. It was early morning on the eve of the full moon, and that was the best news I could have gotten. Not only was it energizing to my wolf, the rest of the pack would have been sleeping as they rested up for the solstice change tomorrow.

This gave me a few extra minutes, and sometimes that was all a shifter needed.

Sprinting across the icy lawn, I ignored the sharp bite of air across my bare skin. My clothes were torn and tattered, but thankfully, the same ones I’d been wearing when I’d been attacked… almost a week ago. If the moon was any indication. Damn. Had I actually been recovering for that long?

Howls rang out back at the pack house, followed by the distinct sound of wolves shifting in the early morning air. I picked up speed, my feet barely touching the ground as my wolf lingered closer to the surface than I’d ever felt before, lending me her strength, speed, and senses.

When I reached the forest, my wolf’s excitement increased. We liked being surrounded by nature like this, and it would help to obscure our trail. They’d still track my scent, of course, but in here there were ways to slow them down.

Ducking and dodging, I almost lost my balance as the occasional bout of dizziness hit me, but I held my shit together long enough to reach the wide creek. Without hesitation, I dove into the water.

Gah. It was so cold. The sort of cold that felt like I’d been struck with a taser, shocking my system to life. The sort of cold that drained your life and energy if you let it.

But I wasn’t ready to die today.

Kicking hard, I swam to the surface, gasping for air as my head popped up. Wolves, as a general rule, were not amazing swimmers. The density of our beast was a magic that transferred to our human forms, but I had always loved to swim.

I also loved that it masked my scent, and very few had the capabilities to follow me in the stream.

Pushing through the numbing sensations in my limbs, I started to swim, staying below the surface as much as possible. No real predators lived in these fresh waters, so all I had to keep an eye out for was debris and the pack.

At one point, the rapids pushed me along and I took a few moments to relax and regain some energy. Just up ahead, there was a bend in the bank, and it was here I planned on crawling out.

I had clearly underestimated how hurt I was, though, because when I attempted to grasp on to the edge of the bank, there just wasn’t enough strength in my grip to beat the incessant pull of the undertow.

My fight wasn’t completely gone, but no matter how hard I struggled, I kept losing traction.

Then my fingers went limp as the current finally tore me from the bank.





9

Just as I was about to be sucked into the dark water, a hand shot out and wrapped around mine, yanking me up and out in one strong tug. The shifter had been hidden behind some long reeds on the edge of this stream, positioning themselves perfectly to grab me.

And I was completely screwed.

If I didn’t have the energy to pull myself from the water, then fighting would absolutely be a waste of my time. But fuck if I wasn’t going to give it the old shifter try.

I could rest when I was dead.

“I knew it,” a familiar voice growled. “You’re so fucking predictable, Sunny.”

I flinched at the name. An old nickname I hadn’t heard since my dad had died. Mera Callahan was my birth name. Our family name meant little bright-headed one and when I was born with a head of red hair, which slowly morphed into an ombre sunset color, my nickname had become “Sunny.”

Fuck Jaxson for remembering that. And why the hell was he choosing now, of all times, to use it again?

“Don’t call me that,” I hissed, attempting to yank my hand away as I stood shivering before him.

“You have no right.”

In the early morning light, I could neither hear nor scent another wolf nearby. Jaxson had used his knowledge of me to track my path, but no one else had that same benefit. Maybe there was still a chance of escape.

“No one expects a wolf to head into the water,” he continued, his voice a low rumble, expression hidden by the shadows cast from nearby trees. “But you were always different. Always had to stand the hell out and make us all take notice.”

I crossed my arms because the freezing air against my wet clothes had my nipples saluting the world, and I would hate for this disloyal asshole to think that had anything to do with him.

“I’ve done nothing to stand out,” I replied, my voice as cold and dead as my heart currently felt.